The oldest writing implement is a writing stone, used on another stone that was smooth or well polished; but confining ourselves to the most widespread implements for writing on paper, one of the first objects used was the stylus, a pointed wooden or metallic stick. The Ancient Egyptians used the reed pen, made from a length of reed straw or bamboo; the point was cut or pounded with a stone to make a brush. Later, bird quills became prevalent, in particular the goose quill, trimmed and shaved to make a flat or fine tip. At the start of the nineteenth century, the large-scale production of metallic nibs began and at the end of the century the first fountain pens appeared, which meant that the pen could be carried around without the need of an inkwell.
In the middle of the 1950's the ballpoint pen was introduced, in which the nib was substituted by a tip containing a minuscule ball that distributed ink as it was rolled on paper. Following this there have been experiments producing the roller ball pen, meant for a more liquid ink, if not literally a fountain pen.